Praedicator

Verba

Monday, April 20, 2009 - Monday in the Second Week of Easter

[Acts 4:23-31 and John 3:1-8]

"And now, Lord, take note of their threats, and enable your servants to speak your word with all boldness, as you stretch forth your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are done through the name of your holy servant Jesus." As they prayed, the place where they were fathered shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

If you want examples of early Christian preaching, the Acts of the Apostles is the place to find them. Granted, the sermons are like arias in an opera but they are very instructive as to how the community understood the Good News at the time that Luke wrote the work. And, of course, like a good opera, there is a plot - the spread of the gospel from Jerusalem to the rest of the world known to Luke and his community (look at the list given for the Pentecost event in Acts 2. There is another overarching context as well, the work of the Holy Spirit in moving fearful but faithful people to become bold and faithful preachers! Indeed, a reading of the gospel scripture for today shows that the Spirit cannot be contained!
In his great work, EVANGELIZATION IN THE MODERN WORLD (Evangelii nuntiandi), Pope Paul VI spoke of the "hidden energy of the Good News..." Why not take the opportunity in this post-Easter period (even if you've eaten all the chocolate bunnies and thrown out the dyed eggs) to read the Acts of the Apostles and discover the energy that led to the very rapid spread of Christianity. It might make one wonder how one might tap into that same Spirit. It's not hard. That Spirit is always there. We just need to overcome the same fears the original preachers had. AMEN